Rotary engine.



B. CONKLIN.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLICATION man MN.3I, 19w.

3 Patented Dec. 17. 1918.

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Fl a 5 III/I B. CONKLIN.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED mun. 19H.

Patented Dec. 17. 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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BRUCE CONKLIN, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

ROTARY ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed January 31, 1917. Serial No. 145,797.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BRUCE CoNKLIN, a citizen of the United States of America, residing'at London, in the county of Middlesex, England, have invented a new and useful Improvement in and Relating to Rotary Engines, of which the following is a specifi cation. I

This invention has reference to rotary engines of the kind described in the specifications of my co -pending applications for patents Serial Numbers 205,077 and 205,078 and the object I have in view is to provide an improved single unit rotary engine of the aforesaid character adapted not only to receive and modify the force of an expansible fluid to produce power, but also to perform other useful functions, for example the compression or exhaustion of fluid, the pumping of liquids, and other purposes for which it is usual to employ a separate or more than one unit.

In accordance with the invention I employ a rotary engine of the kind described in my aforesaid prior specifications, and I provide the exterio annular surface of the rotatable casing with a plurality of vanes, and surround said rotatable casing with a concentrically mounted stationary outer casing having a plurality of rotary abutments, so

that there will be formed two annular working chambers, one on each side of and concentric with the rotatable element carrying th two sets of vanes. With such a construction the low-pressure fluid instead of being exhausted to atmosphere may be utilized to exert an additional effort upon the rotatable element, to which end I may provide means, such as ports and valves, whereby such low-pressure fluid may be introduced from the inner of the two working chambers to the outer concentric working chambers, thereby utilizing the full expansive effort of the working fluid to produce power impulse upon the aforesaid rotating element. a

With slight modification unafi'ecting the spirit of my invention a construction such as indicated above may be employed for exhausting or compressing gases or for pumping liquids, for example it may be used as an air-compressing plant the air being introduced to the outer of the two concentric working chambers and compressed by the vanes working therein into a suitable tank, which may if desired be provided with a non-return or other valve. arrangement, and in the case where an explosive mixture is utilized to actuate the engine, the exhaust gases may be compressed with the air into the tank, but it is obvious that where it is undesirable that this should be done, or where steam is employed as the working fluid, I may dispense with the communication between the two working chambers and exhaust the low-pressure fluid in the manner described in my aforesaid prior specifications or otherwise as may be found convenient, and utilize the outer working chamber for pumping, compressing or exhausting as the case may be.

In a further application of my invention I provide the outer rotating casing of an engine such as described in my aforesaid prior specification with a dynamo-winding and arrange appropriate field magnets around same, thus producing a compact selfcontained unitary structure for producing power and at the same time generating electricity.

In order that my invention may be readily understood and carried into effect by those skilled in the art to which it appertains I will now proceed to describe the same fully, for which purpose reference should be had 'to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 represents a vertical longitudinal section of a rotary engine and pump constructed in accordance with my invention and adapted to be actuated by steam or other expansible fluid.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the same partly in section.

Fig. 8 illustrates in longitudinal section a double expansion rotary steam engine under this invention.

Fig. 4 is a view partly in section and partly in elevation of an internal combustion rotary engine and pump or compressor.

The rotary steam pump illustrated in Fig. 1 comprises a hollow normally stationary drum 1 having a plurality of positively rotated rotary abutments 2, and a concentrically mounted element 3 having a plurality ofvanes 4, the element 3 being mounted to rotate about the drum 1. The working fluid is admitted to the interior 20 of the drum 1 through a tubular shaft 5, and is distributed through ports 21 in the periphery of the drum to elongated ports22 in the rotatable element 3 and thence to the xpansion chambers 6, the exhaust of the working fluid be- Patented Dec. 17, 1918.

lVith such an ing effected through the passages 7 in the drum 1, said passages communicating with the annular passage 8 surrounding the tubular drum shaft 5.

The construction so far described is sub stantially similar to that illustrated and described in my aforesaid specification No. 205,078 so that further description of the operation of the device will here be unnecessary.

Now in accordance with the present invention I provide a concentrically mounted stationary outer casing 9 having a plurality of rotaryabutments 10, and mount upon the outer annular surface of the rotatable element 3 a plurality of vanes 11 adapted to move in the annular working chambers 14 constituted by the space between the rotating element 3 and outer stationary casing 9, which latter is provided with admission openings 12 and outlets 13.

In operation, the rotatable element 3 is driven in a clock-wise direction by the working fluid admitted through the tubular shaft 5 by wayof the ports 21 in the drum 1 and ports 22 in the rotatable element 3, as explained in my aforesaid prior specification, and the fluid to be pumped or exhausted is admitted to the annular chambers 1 1 through the openings 12 in any convenient manner.

As each of the vanes 11 passes the rotary abutments 10, a quantity of fluid will be drawn into the annular chambers 14 through the openings 12, and the next succeeding vane 11 will force and discharge said fluid through the outlets 13.

It will of course be understood that the rotary abutments 10 carried by the outer casing 9 are positively rotated, so as to insure correct timingof the vanesll with the pockets in the rotary abutments 10, and this is effected by providing each of said abutments with a gear 15 (Fig. 2) meshing with the toothed ring 16 which-as explained in my aforesaid specification-serves to drive the rotary abutments 2.

Fig. 3 illustrates a double expansion rotary steam engine under the present invention which, in its essential particulars, is similar to the construction described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2, but instead of exhausting the working fluid to atmosphere through the passages 7 of Fig. 1, said pas sages are dispensed with, and ports 17 are formed in the rotatable element 3 in advance of the vanes 4E and behind the vanes 11, so that the low-pressure working fluid is conducted to the low-pressure working chamber 14 to drive the vanes 11, so exerting an additional power-impulse upon the rotating element 3 and thereby utilizing the maximum expansive effect of the workin fluid. The outer casing 9 is provided wit exhaust openings 18 through which the prior specification Serial No. 205,077 which embodies improvements in the construction and operation of internal combustion engines of the rotary abutment type.

The pump or compressor portion of the apparatus is similar to that described With reference to Figs. 1 and 2, that is to say it comprises an outer casing 9 having rotary abutments 10, while the rotary element 3 of the engine is provided with vanes 11 working in the annular chambers 1-1 formed by the space between the rotating element 3 and casing 9, which latter is provided With inlet and outlet apertures 12 and 13 respectively for the introduction and ejection of the fluid being pumped or compressed as the case may be, it being of course understood that a non-return valve or a valve adapted to open at a predetermined pressure may be provided at the outlets or in some other convenient position, such as on the storage tank connected to the compressor. By means of ports in the inner stationary element or drum 1 similar to the ports 21 Fig. 2 and ports 22 in the rotatable element 3 in rear of the vanes a combustible mixture is admitted to the explosion .or working cham-. bers 6 the products of combustion being exhausted therefrom by way of ports or passages 23 in the rotatable element adapted to communicate through ports or passages not shown in the inner stationary element or drum with the exhaust passage as at Fig. 2.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that I have provided in a unitary structure a rotary mover actuated by steam or like expansible fluid or by a combustible mixture, and an element adapted either to assist the power developed by the prime mover by utilizing the maximum efficiency of the working fluid, or to perform other independent functions such as the pumping, exhaustion or compression of liquids or gases.

hat I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a rotary engine or the like the com.- bination of a stationary inner element or drum a plurality of rotary abutments mounted in said drum a concentrically mounted element or ring adapted to rotate about the stationary drum an annular space or working chamber between said elements vanes on the inner and exterior surfaces of the rotatable element or ring a concentric stationary casing surrounding the said ro table element a plurality of rotary abutments mounted in said stationary casing a second annular space or working chamber between the exterior surface of the rotatable element or ring and the inner surface of the said surrounding casing ports in the drum and cooperating ports in the rotatable element communicating with the working chamber whereby the said rotatable element is adapted for actuation by the force of an expansible fluid so as to produce or store power or energy for performing useful work.

2. In a rotary engine or the like the combination of a stationary inner element or drum a plurality of rotary abutments mounted in said drum a concentrically mounted element or ring adapted to rotate about the stationary element an annular space or working chamber between the sai elements vanes on the inner and outer surfaces of the rotatable element or ring a concentric stationary casing surrounding the said rotatable element a plurality of rotary abutments mounted in said stationary casing a second annular space or working chamber between the exterior surface of the rotatable element or ring and the inner surface of the said surrounding casing ports in the periphery of the drum cooperating ports in the rotatable element and ports and passages in the stationary element communicating with the working chambers for exhausting the fluid.

3. In a rotary engine or the like the combination of a stationary element or drum a plurality of rotary abutments mounted in said drum a concentrically mounted element or ring adapted to rotate about the stationary drum an annular space or working chamber between said elements vanes on the inner and outer surfaces of the rotatable terior surface of the rotatable element or ring and the inner surface of the said surrounding casing and ports or passages in the periphery of the inner drum cooperating ports in the rotatable element ports in the inner stationary elem ent communicating with the inner working chamber for exhausting low pressure fluid and ports in the outer stationary element for the suction and discharge or inlet and outlet of fluid.

4. In a rotary engine or the like the combinaton of a stationary element or drum a plurality of rotary abutments mounted in said drum a concentrically mounted element or ring adapted to rotate about the stationary drum an annular space or working chamber between said elements vanes on the inner and exterior surfaces of the rotatable element or ring a concentric stationary casing surrounding the said rotatable element a plurality of rotary abutments mounted in said stationary casing a second annular space or working chamber between the ex terior surface of the rotatable element or ring and the inner surface of the said surrounding casing ports in the rotatable element in advance of the vanes on the inner annular surface of the said element and behind the vanes on the exterior annular surface of the rotatable element to admit low pressure working fluid from the annular workin chamber between the stationary drum and the inner surface of the rotatable element to the annular working chamber between the outer surface of the rotatable element and the inner surface of the stationary casing to exert additional power impulse through the outer set of vanes upon the said rotatable element and ports in the outer stationary casing for exhausting the said working fluid.

BRUCE CONKLIN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Batents, Washington, D. 0. 

